Untitled, As of Yet
by Your Kidney
Summary: HaoxYoh. Harry Potter crossover. Three years after the Shaman Fight ends, Yoh gets invited to attend Hogwarts. On the way he befriends Hermione and Blaise, and finds out that Hao isn't quite as dead as anyone thought. DISCONTINUED
1. Chapter 1

Summary: Three years after the Shaman Fight ends, Yoh gets invited to attend Hogwarts. On the way he befriends Hermione and Blaise, and finds out that Hao isn't quite as dead as anyone thought. HaoxYoh.

Warning: Major Anna bashing. If you like her, get the hell out of this story, since my dislike of her shows quite a bit. There will also be twincest, but not for a while. I think that's all. THIS ALSO FOLLOWS THE PLOTLINE OF THE ANIME, BUT THERE ARE A LOT OF MANGA SPOILERS.

Untitled, as of Yet **Chapter One**

Three years after the Shaman Fight 

Yoh was lying on his futon in the guest room along with all his other friends (who were visiting), listening to music and staring at the ceiling.

_Three years to the day…_ he mused to himself. _It haunts me so much more during this time of year._ The image of his brother, with that horrible streak of blood exactly down the center of his body, kept persistently popping up into his mind, no matter how hard he tried to dispel it.

_Tap, tap, tap, tap…_ came from outside his window. He turned towards it curiously.

Startled out of his self-pity, he turned towards the window.

"That's odd," he said to himself, lines of confusion creasing his forehead. "What's an owl doing tapping at my window?"

A few moments later, Ren opened his eyes from the next futon over. "Go see what the hell it wants before it wakes up everyone else."

Yoh got up to obey his friend's command, laughing at the grimace that was no doubt gracing the Tao's face.

The owl flew in and circled around the room before perching on Ren's head. It ruffled its feathers imperiously, beak curling into a sort-of-smirk.

_Shink. Shing!_

Ren grabbed his sword from under his pillow and whipped it open. (For any confusion, I'm referring to the weapon he uses in the manga, which I don't think is in the anime. It's called the Jeweled Thunder in English, but I can't find my 9th book, where the actual name is…) He swung it madly at the bird perched in his hair, which managed to jump and dodge away from every offending swipe.

Yoh flinched and stopped laughing when the sword came too close and cut off a handful of feather tips . He snatched the sword out of his Chinese friend's hand, where he slid it shut. "See what it wants before killing it, please."

Ren sighed, letting the owl stay on its perch. It smugly ruffled its feathers and then offered out its leg, which had a letter attached to it. Yoh untied it and, at his friend's urging, read the front out loud.

**Yoh Asakura**

_Guest Room_

_Funbari Onsen_

**Tokyo **

The two raised an eyebrow at each other curiously. "It sounds like some weird stalker…"

Yoh shrugged. He ripped the envelope open, revealing a letter written in the same green, spidery ink as the address was.

**"**_**HOGWARTS SCHOOL**_

_of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY_"?

Yoh read the letter out loud.

_Headmaster: ALBUS DUMBLEDORE_

_(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc. Chf. Warlock,_

_Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)_

_Dear Mr. Asakura,_

_We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please pardon the fact that this letter is many years delayed. You will find enclosed a list of all your necessary books and equipment._

_Term begins of September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31._

_Yours sincerely,_

_Minerva McGonagall_

_Deputy Headmistress_

Yoh stared at the letter in shock. "This is a little weird…" he stated.

Ren nodded in agreement, eyeing the parchment with suspicion. "How do you know if it's real or not?"

"No idea." Shrugging, Yoh pulled out a second piece of parchment and started reading: (Rather quickly at that, since there was a lot of writing on it with the length of the parchment)

"_HOGWARTS SCHOOL_

_of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY_

_UNIFORM_

_All students will require:_

_1. Three sets of plain work robes (black)_

_2. One plain pointed hat (black) for daywear_

_3. One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)_

_4. One winter cloak (black, silver fastenings)_

_Please note that all pupils' clothing should carry name tags_

_COURSE BOOKS_

_All students should have a copy of each of the following:_

The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1)

_by Miranda Goshawk_

A History of Magic_ by Bathilda Bagshot_

Magical Theory_ by Adalbert Waffling_

A Beginners" Guide to Transfiguration _by Emeric Switch_

One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi

_by Phyllida Spore_

Magical Drafts and Potions_ by Arsenius Jigger_

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

_by Newt Scamander_

The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection

_by Quentin Trimble_

_SECOND YEAR_

_T_he Standard Book of Spells (Grade 2)

_by Miranda Goshawk_

Break with a Banshee_ by Gilderoy Lockhart_

Gadding with Ghouls _by Gilderoy Lockhart_

Holiday with Hags_ by Gilderoy Lockhart_

Travels with Trolls_ by Gilderoy Lockhart_

Wanderings with_ Werewolves by Gilderoy Lockhart_

Year with the Yeti _by Gilderoy Lockhart_

(The list went on in that manner nearly forever)

_OTHER EQUIPMENT_

_1 wand_

_1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)_

_1 set of crystal phials_

_1 telescope_

_1 set brass scales_

_Students may also bring an owl OR a cat OR a toad_

_PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS"_

The only thing Yoh could think of to say after reading the letter was, "I'll need a _lot_ of books."

Ren cautiously examined the text. "I'd suspect Hao if he weren't d-" He cut himself off abruptly. "I'm sorry. I forgot, with the letter and all…"

Yoh shrugged. "Fine." However, his newly downcast expression showed otherwise.

"Maybe it's that idiot Chocolove and a lame attempt to cheer you up?"

"…Err... I don't think so. It's a little too elaborate for him. But there's only one way to find out." He took a pen and scribbled a note at the bottom of the paper.

_If any of this is real, then come to my house tomorrow_

_morning. Bring some sort of proof._

_Yoh Asakura._

He stuck it in a fresh envelope and tied it to the leg of the owl, which was still on Ren's head. It clucked once before flying out the open window.

The two sat on their futon in companionable silence until Ren stood. (No, they are not sharing a single futon. The singular and plural forms are the same in Japanese).

Yoh looked at him, his head tilted to the side in a quiet question. Ren took his wrist and pulled him up. He led the way out of the room without so much as an explanation.

"Where're we going?"

"Outside. I know you never sleep on this night, so I've decided to stay awake with you."

Yoh smiled warmly. "Thank you."

**Next Day**

It had been an hour since all the stars disappeared for the day when Yoh finally climbed down from the branch he had been perching in. If he doesn't start breakfast for Anna soon, she'd be pissed beyond belief.

Besides, if she found out he had pulled another all-nighter on account of his dead brother, he'd probably be slapped.

A couple minutes before breakfast was ready, said fiancée walked in.

"I see you weren't in your bed last night, Yoh."

He flinched. "I was for most of it…"

"You don't sleep at all."

_Busted._

"Anna, why can't you understand that he was my _brother?! _The other half of my soul!"

She scowled. "It makes no sense why you feel so guilty for killing someone that would've killed you otherwise. Besides, he was trash. Filthy garbage that deserved what he got."

Yoh felt his normally well-contained anger break free. He pointed towards the door, face shadowed. The wooden spoon in his other hand snapped, and his fingernails bit into his palm instead. "Out. Of. My. House."

By now, everyone was in the kitchen, varying degrees of shock written on their faces as they watched the drama unfold.

Anna remained impassive. Just like always. "I wouldn't want to live with a man that's beating himself up for killing a murderer."

He grabbed the front of her shirt and brought their faces together. "I never would've done what I did if he was in his right mind. _Remember that!_"

"And since when have you become an expert on Hao!"

" "How do I know"? We share a soul, for God's sake! He does what he does because he was betrayed twice! He's only following his dream."

Yoh would've continued his berating if a loud pop hadn't interrupted him. He turned to see what it was and released his fiancée at the same time.

An old man with a long, white beard, half moon spectacles and colorful robes had appeared near the counter where the rice was horribly burning. He waved his hand and the fire went out, stopping the food from getting any worse.

"I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

The shock the entire group was under was broken. Ren, Jun, Faust, Horo Horo, Pirika, Manta, Ryu, Chocolove, Tamao and Lyserg all looked back and forth between Anna and Yoh, and the newcomer.

Well, all but Manta. He was still frightened by the little-seen rage Yoh had shown. "A-are you really going to kick her out?"

When he got no answer, the man began to speak. "My name is Albus Dumbledore, and I'm here to give you proof of the existence of magic, as requested by Mr. Asakura."

Yoh bowed in respect. "Thank you for coming on such short notice, but I have no reason not to believe anymore."

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow, but remaining otherwise unfazed. "Oh? And why is that?"

"The owl apparently reached you, you just appeared out of thin air, and you stopped breakfast from overly burning with just a wave."

The old man smiled serenely. "I see that I have not made a mistake in inviting you to Hogwarts."

Anna stepped in. "What's going on here?" she asked rudely.

"He didn't tell you?"

She glared at her husband-to-be.

Dumbledore chuckled. "I take that as a "no", then. Well, I'm the headmaster at a school for witchcraft and wizardry, and have invited Mr. Asakura to join us for a year."

"He's not going," she snapped without missing a beat.

"That's not for you to decide."

She scowled. "As his fiancée, I have every right to say where he's allowed to go."

Yoh shrugged. "You can think like that all you'd like, but I'm free to do what I want."

"Oh really?" She cocked an eyebrow as she reached for her prayer beads.

"You want me here this badly?" Yoh asked nervously. When it was clear she wasn't going to back down he muttered to Amidamaru, who was behind him: "Into your tablet, now!"

The same instant that he did, Ren rushed forward to punch Anna across the face, and Horo Horo threw her beads against the wall. Yoh disappeared up the stairs.

Shards bounced around the fallen itako, who stared up at the two incredulously. "What was that about? How can you get mad at me for trying to keep him here?"

Ren glared darkly. "He's old enough to decide his own future. You've no right to be a part of it if you can't see that for yourself."

"B-but…" She put on her best pathetic face while opening her mouth to retort. She was cut off by Yoh's reappearance.

"Is there any way I can leave right away?" He came back down the stairs with his sword in hand, his appearance effectively redirecting Anna's focus. He had just been in his room, collecting a few things so he could be ready to go.

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled. "I hadn't intended to let you stay here much longer. Do you have everything you need?"

Yoh shrugged. "I've got money."

At those words, Anna's stood up, previous shock turning to disbelief. "You're taking all the money?"

"I never said anything about that, but, yes, I'm taking everything."

"No!" Eyes blazing, she stomped over to Yoh until she was practically in his face. "No! You can't do that! What will I do?"

"Work, I guess," he said nonchalantly with an innocent face.

Ren smirked in approval.

"How are we getting there?" the youngest Asakura calmly asked, not seeming to notice his fiancée's fuming.

" How I arrived here: apparition. Now, go say your good-byes. We'll leave in five minutes."

Yoh left Anna to walk over to Ren, Horo Horo and Manta's section of the large group gathered in the kitchen. "Thanks, you two," he said to the shamans. "For standing up for me and all."

Horo Horo grinned. "Anything for a friend. Besides, did you think we'd just let it lie?"

"I'm going to miss you guys so much." He looked down. "You too, Manta. We'll all keep in touch?"

When Yoh was content with their answers he turned to leave again. Except…he didn't go far. Ryu swept him up into a huge bear hug, sobbing hysterically. "I'm going to miss you so much, danna!"

"Yeah, I'll miss you too," Yoh said sadly, patting the towering man on the shoulder, as he couldn't quite reach his back.

Everyone had a hug for Yoh and their own parting words.

"I can't believe you're leaving just like that," Lyserg commented.

Yoh laughed. "I know, it _is_ kind of spur of the moment, isn't it?" He looked at his friend awkwardly, not knowing if he was supposed to hug him or not.

His problem was solved when Lyserg latched onto him tightly. "It'll be weird not having you around."

"I can imagine." After a moment, Yoh disentangled himself and looked over the whole group. "Well, bye, you guys. I'll probably be back in December for the holidays." He was about to go for good, but then paused. "Oh, and Anna?" Yoh looked back over his shoulder at the girl silently seething. "I'm breaking off the marriage."

Before his words sunk in, Dumbledore took him by the shoulder and said something under his breath. Everything seemed to condense into one, small spot with rib-crushing pressure.

As soon as it started, it finished, and Yoh and the Professor were in a busy pub. "Sorry about that, Mr. Asakura. The feeling takes some time to get accustomed to."

Yoh laughed good-naturedly and waved it off. " Perfectly fine. I've experienced worse."

"I'm sure you have," Dumbledore answered absently as he searched the busy pub. "This is strange, they said they'd they would be here."

"Who, sir?"

"Oh, just some people…" he said and scratched his beard. "Ah, there they are."

He swept regally through the busy tables, giving a nod of thanks when people moved out of their way. He quickly came to a table in the back corner. It was all Yoh could do to keep up.

"These will be your guides today, picked because of their outstanding academic achievements in Hogwarts, so don't worry, you'll be in capable hands. And because I have other matters to handle, I'll leave you three to take care of introductions." With that, Professor Dumbledore deapparated.

"…So…" Yoh started, looking over his guides for the day. The girl on the left had long, brown, curly hair and was very tall, while the man was a little shorter with dark, olive skin and black hair.

"I'm Yoh Asakura, from Japan." He took one of his hands off the hilt of his sword where it rested before him and held it out to the woman.

"I'm Hermione Granger from England."

"Nice to meet you."

"And I'm Blaise Zabini, from Greece," the other said in a dark, alluring voice.

"Good to meet you, too."

Hermione pulled out a…stick?…and waved it. Instantly a chair popped up from out of nowhere. "Have a seat," she offered.

Yoh sat down. "What's this place called?" he asked conversationally. "It seems a big shady for people our age."

They chuckled. " The _Leaky Cauldron,_" Hermione answered. "Only the most popular meeting spot in the Wizarding World!"

As she began to ramble on about its history and significance, Yoh placed the Harusame on the table so he could better get comfortable in his chair.

Blaise leaned forward to get a closer look at the sword. "Holy shit, is that what I think it is?"

"Um…a katana?" Hermione stopped her rambling to ogle at it, before launching into a lecture about "potentially dangerous objects".

"No! I mean…can I look at it closer?" At the shaman's nod, he slid it over and began to examine it from every angle. "It is!" Blaise raised an eyebrow at Yoh. "How did you get the Harusame?"

Yoh had the decency to look embarrassed. "Well…I…needed it more than the local museum, so…I kind of just took it."

"Why on earth did you need a famous sword so much that you'd steal it?"

He smiled. "Before I give a semi-full explanation, I want you to meet someone." He called his spirit ally out from the memorial tablet.

"Yoh-dono! Is everything okay? Did Anna try to hurt you? Did you get away?" Amidamaru asked, hysterically pouncing on Yoh.

"Yes, I'm fine. Anna's probably weeping more at the loss of her precious money and of her future title as the wife of the Shaman King than me." He turned his attention back to Blaise and Hermione. "You guys, this is Amidamaru. Yes, Blaise, _the_ Amidamaru. I'm a shaman, and he's my spirit ally. Harusame is the medium I use for channeling him in battles."

"That's really cool!" Hermione gushed, conveniently glancing over the topic of her previous tirade. "But wait…battles? You fight?"

Before Yoh could say anything, Blaise cut in. "Didn't the Shaman Fight end not too long ago?"

He sighed. "Three years ago yesterday. Please, can we talk about this later? I have really bad memories associated with that."

"Oh, Yoh-dono!" Amidamaru wailed tragically. "Can you ever forgive me for the part I played?.!"

Yoh smiled sadly. "You were just doing what I forced you to do. Now shush, your outburst is making them even more curious."

"Indeed," Blaise inputted.

"I'll talk about it when we're in school, if you still want to know then." He stood. "Why don't you show me how to get to wherever we're getting our things, and tell me a little bit about Hogwarts and yourselves while you're at it? Rock, paper, scissors for who goes first."

Once Hermione had opened the doorway into Diagon Alley, she had to give Blaise a lengthy explanation on how to play Rock, Paper, Scissors.

Surprisingly, he won.

"We need to go to Gringotts to get you money before we buy anything," Blaise casually stated. "Hey, are you listening to me?"

Yoh slowly shook his head "no", entranced by the busy street.

"Whatever." Zabini took him by the arm and led him through the crowds. "So…you already know who I am, but I'm guessing that's it. I come from a pureblooded line, which means I've got no non-magic blood in me."

"What's the point in that?" He broke his arm out of Blaise's firm hold.

"Hard to explain without sitting down and having a lot of time on our hands. Anyhow, I'm a Slytherin at Hogwarts-do you know about the Houses?"

Yoh had to shake his head.

"Hogwarts has four Houses, and you're placed in the one that best fits your personality. Slytherin is for the cunning; Ravenclaw, the smart; Hufflepuff, the loyal; and Gryffindor…the brave." The last word was said with disdain. At Yoh's look, he elaborated. "Slytherins and Gryffindors don't get along well. They especially think we're all Death Eaters in training."

Yoh looked strangely at a woman selling dried earlobes and then asked, "What're Death Eaters?"

"They're the "bad guys"."

"Ah. I know that type. There were plenty in the Shaman Fight."

Blaise grimaced. "Um…somehow I doubt they were as bad as the Death Eaters."

"Does almost succeeding in getting the power to become supreme dictator of a shaman-only world count?"

"Ah. Maybe they were."

Yoh shrugged. "Except they really weren't that awful. The leader and I…would've been friends if he didn't have such messed-up ideals, and some of his followers made interesting conversationalists. Oh, it's hard to put into words."

Hermione pushed him on. "No, try please try. It's so interesting to hear about the conflicts in other areas."

"I…It's something that I really don't really want to talk about. The memory of the last battle is painful for me. I'm sorry." Yoh bit his lip as he tried to think of something to say. "So…um…Hermione, what House are you in?"

"I'm a Gryffindor," she answered proudly.

Blaise rolled his eyes.

"Wait…that doesn't make any sense." Yoh stopped in the middle of the street.

"Why not?" she asked, stopping with him.

"Well, from what he said," the Asakura pointed to Blaise, "I was under the impression that Gryffindors and Slytherins don't get along. So…why haven't there been any arguments, or…" Yoh trailed off in confusion.

"We made a truce this morning so we wouldn't scare you off. Besides, we both tend to stay out of sight in the arguments, so it's not that difficult," Blaise said and started to walk again. "Come on. Gringotts is right in front of us, and we're wasting time standing around and chatting."

They had no choice but to follow.

Yoh was about to ask what the strange creatures were when the three reached one of the desks. "Hello and welcome to Gringotts. My name is Ironfist, and how may I help you today?" the thing said.

"Um…well…I was wondering if I could change my money in for the currency you use here? If it's not too much of a problem…"

"Of course I can. Put it on the counter here and I'll change it over."

Yoh looked relieved as he dug through his pockets and pulled out wads of money.

"Ah, Japanese. We don't see much of your type around here."

Two minutes later, Ironfist gave back a small, leather sack stuffed with coins and a receipt. "That's a charmed purse to hold more than it looks it can, and you have seven thousand five hundred sixty-two galleons, twelve sickles and five knuts in there. Have a nice day."

Yoh took it and graciously bowed his head. "Thank you, you too."

"Where did you get so much money?!" Hermione stage-whispered once they were out of hearing range of the goblins.

Yoh laughed nervously.

**THIS IS A PAGE BREAK**

Blaise, Hermione and Yoh were just leaving Flourish and Blotts with their books when Yoh felt something he hadn't felt in three years.

The presence was faint, but unmistakable: fiery, intense, and angry.

Hao.

Yoh dropped his bags and shakily raised a hand to his mouth. He was on the verge of tears.

"Are you alright?"

Tears of joy.

"Yoh-dono? Did you feel that?"

He slowly nodded his head, ignoring the worried words of his new friends.

"That's impossible! He's not supposed to be back yet! Not for five hundred years. But…" Yoh grinned and threw his arms around his ghostly companion. "He's back! I don't know where or how or why, but…he's back!

**THIS IS ANOTHER PAGE BREAK**

A couple hours later, the four could be found in front of Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor eating ice cream. The whole incident in front of Flourish and Blotts had put Yoh into one of the best moods he had experienced in a few years.

Blaise and Hermione had come to an unspoken agreement not to mention it until later.

"What are you doing until school starts?" Blaise asked before taking a bite of tiramisu.

Yoh winced. "Crap, I hadn't exactly thought about that yet."

"Good. You'll be staying with me," he replied, cool as a cucumber. It was as if inviting someone you just met that day to live at your house for two weeks was perfectly normal.

Yoh froze with his spoon halfway to his mouth. "Are you serious?"

"Of course I am! Mother told me I should ask you over if you were even halfway decent."

"I suppose I should take that as a compliment," he said with a grin. "And…thanks. It's nice of you two to invite me."

"Ah, no problem. Greeks, especially my family, absolutely adore guests." He glanced at his watch and then at his empty dessert place. "We really shouldn't be eating sweets before lunch."

With nothing to do for the moment, they leisurely soaked in the warm sunlight and took turns pointing out people with crazy outfits.

"Look, there's one! Oh my god, who wears their hair like that nowadays?" Blaise tried to muffle his laughter with his hand in vain.

Yoh almost fell out of his chair in mirth. "The sad thing is…is I know someone with their hair _exactly_ like that!"

Blaise gaped. "That's horrible!" he said in shock.

"I know," he chortled. "Speaking of…" Yoh looked next to him where Hermione was sitting. "You mentioned your friends earlier. Out of curiosity, what are they like?"

Blaise huffed. "Pompous buffoons who act like they own the school."

He got punched in the arm. "No they aren't! Harry's a sweet boy who survived the Killing Curse when he was a year old, and is now famous for it, but none of it has ever gone to his head. Ron can be a prat sometimes, but he's loyal beyond a doubt. They're both really nice, even if…they can be quite vocal in their dislike towards Slytherins."

"They don't even know any of us! It's all Draco's fault for egging them on."

"Draco?"

"Harry Potter's rival and the "leader" of Slytherin. They're always getting into brawls around the school."

"You don't like Draco?"

"No, it's not that. He just doesn't like Potter."

Yoh waved his spoon at Blaise. "What're your friends like?"

He shrugged. "I drift around, and mostly keep to myself. Draco's an ass sometimes, but we'll sit and chat when there isn't any other interesting conversation around, which is most of the time, but that's beside the point."

"That's sad."

Blaise grinned. "No, no, no. I like my solitude. So, what about you? The only thing I've heard is that one of them has an out-of-style hairdo." Hermione giggled at the muggle term.

"Erg, where to begin?" Yoh asked himself. "Um…Ren! Tao Re- Well, I guess it'd be Ren Tao here, is a complete hothead, used to be a creepy, psycho killer until I made him see the error of his ways, and…he's cool. He's good to have around when you need a shoulder to cry on. Horo Horo is, to put it bluntly, one of those crazy environmentalists you see on TV. He's got naturally blue hair and likes to snowboard. Chocolove tells too many stupid jokes. Ren actually thought my Hogwarts letter was something he sent. Ryu's the one with the creepy hair and used to be a gang leader, but now he's a mushy, sentimental guy that bear hugs people too much. Lyserg had his parents killed by the leader of Hoshi -the bad guys- when he was really young, so was all revenge-filled until he saw him die. Faust's a doctor who lost his wife when they were newly married and keeps her skeleton inside his coat, and Manta's a three-foot-tall midget with a dictionary."

Blaise and Hermione blinked owlishly.

"What?" Yoh looked up at Amidamaru, who was floating above his offering of melted ice cream. "Did I say something wrong?"

"I think you gave them the wrong impressions of your friends, Yoh-dono."

Yoh grinned apologetically at them. "Sorry? Come on, it's all right, they're great! They'll probably visit during the year, and you'll see what I mean."

"Sure, Yoh, whatever you say," Blaise said with a sigh. "Oh, hey! I've just got a really good idea! Hermione, what time are you expected back?"

She shrugged. "Probably around five or six, why?"

Blaise grinned for the first time that day. "Let's go check out Muggle London."

**THIS IS THE LAST PAGE BREAK OF THE CHAPTER!**

The sky was beginning to grow dark when Yoh, Hermione and Blaise (Amidamaru trailing behind) re-entered the smoky tavern, laughing their heads off. The few hours had been more than enough to ease all tensions as they loosened up, lightened up and opened up.

Maybe it had something to do with Yoh forcing Blaise and Hermione to try sushi, or perhaps it was them venturing into a condom shop, and then getting kicked out for immature behavior.

Whatever it was, they had formed a tight friendship, and it was sad to have to part ways.

"There you are, Blaise!" yelled a tall woman over the din, and hurried over. Her black curls bounced in time with her springy step and the blue frills of her short dress. "Oh, you _must_ introduce me to your friends!" She had a sunny disposition that brought cheer to the room.

Blaise blushed at her over-enthusiasm. "Mother, this is Hermione Granger, the top witch at Hogwarts, and Yoh Asakura from Japan."

"How marvelous!" She swooped in to kiss the cheeks of both of them. "You'll be staying with us in Greece, right, dear?" she asked with a tap to Yoh's nose.

He grinned, already liking this woman. "Of course. I couldn't think of turning down such a kind offer."

"Oh, what a polite young man! You can call me Josephine!" She spotted Amidamaru. "And who might you be?"

"I am Amidamaru, Josephine-san, Yoh-dono's friend." He bowed.

"A pleasure to meet you," she answered and bowed back.

"Err…sorry to cut in like this, but my parents are expecting me soon," Hermione said. She looked back and forth between her two new friends. "So, bye, I guess. See you in a couple weeks."

"Yeah."

"Yeah."

They grinned at each other, and she turned and left.

"Do you know how to use Floo, dear?" Josephine asked after a few moments.

Yoh shook his head.

"Okay. Take a pinch of this powder," she held out a pot, "throw it into the fire and clearly state your destination, then step in. To get to our place, just say "Blaise's Floo Room". Does that make sense?"

""Blaise's Floo Room"?" he asked with a laugh.

She smiled back. "We all have our own fireplaces. Now come on, we don't have all day! Dinner starts in an hour."

"Okay." Yoh juggled his numerous bags in one hand, the other trying to get a pinch of the green powder. He gave a victorious smile when he succeeded, and tossed it into the fire. "Blaise's Floo Room!" He took a deep breath and stepped in.

The spinning was a shock, but he'd had worse surprises. A few seconds later he was spat out, and it was all he could do to stay on his feet.

Amidamaru looked a little dizzy.

With a green flash, Blaise stumbled through, trying to keep track of his bags. He immediately dropped them in favor of the mirror. "I hate the Floo," he complained. "I always get so sooty."

Yoh rolled his eyes and laughed. "So, where should I put my stuff?"

"The house elves will take care of it. Come on, I'll show you around!" Blaise led him out of the small, undecorated Floo Room and into a library. "This is where I do all my work and keep my personal books." He waved his hand unceremoniously. "And you know what? I'll give you a tour after dinner. For now, I want to show you what it's like outside." He dashed out the door. "Come on!"

Yoh followed him through a couple rooms when Blaise suddenly stopped in front of a tall, wooden door.

"My friend, I give you GREECE!" He swung the door open with a large show of drama, revealing the sparkling Mediterranean.

……

End of Chap. One! I'm going to be deleting the other chapters, but if anybody wants them, give me a heads-up and your email, and I'll send them over!

Does anybody want me to do a one-shot with Blaise, Hermione and Yoh in muggle London? If I get enough interest I might write one.

Bye for now!

**p.s. REVIEW!**


	2. Chapter 2

"Speaking"

_Mind-talking with Hao_

'Talking in Japanese'

Untitled, as of Yet **Chapter Two**

**Disclaimer:** If I owned SK I'd probably spend the whole time drawing really sketchy doujins that could never be published in the manga. Which is why they'd be doujins.

**Author Note:** Yeah, I know Blaise isn't Greek, but who cares. I'm portraying him however I want. Besides, he'd make a good one.

**Recap:**

Yoh followed him through a couple rooms when Blaise suddenly stopped in front of a tall, wooden door.

"My friend, I give you GREECE!' He swung the door open with a show of drama, revealing the sparkling Mediterranean.

**End Recap**

"Up, up, up!" Yoh chanted, bouncing on his friend's bed. "Get up!"

Blaise groaned, but refrained from heeding his friend, if only to get him to shut up . "What are you doing, Yoh? Why do I have to get up?"

The Greek teen missed the excited grin on Yoh's face. "It's your birthday, silly! Mum and Dad told me to come get you out of bed. You should see the number of presents down there!"

Blaise smiled and cracked open his eyes. "So if it's _my_ birthday, why are _you_ so excited?" Yoh ignored him and dragged him out of bed without answering. He sighed; he hadn't really expected one anyway.

The two of them walked through the many halls down to a less impressive dining room, still clad in only their nightclothes.

Yoh was right; there _were_ a lot of presents. Half of the coffee table was covered in stacks of envelopes and a whole chair was buried in the plethora of wrapped gifts.

Blaise eyed the daunting pile and sighed. "Let's figure out this whole mess after we eat."

Nobody complained.

Yoh and Blaise sat across from Josephine and Marc –Blaise's parents– in plush, green seats. A few envelopes fluttered to the ground as Blaise dislodged two clean plates from under the pile. He scowled at the offending envelopes before handing one of the plates over to Yoh.

As Yoh had quickly discovered in the week he'd been there, breakfast was the only quiet time in the Zabini household. They were obviously nonconformists to the Pureblood norm, if what he had read was correct – but who was to say it was?

Twenty minutes later when all the food was eaten up and the house elves had cleared the plates, Blaise turned towards the large pile with distaste.

Josephine, a corner of her lips twitching, handed him the first parcel. It was covered in dark purple paper, tied with a gray ribbon, and was the size of a loaf of bread. He unhurriedly opened it to reveal an elaborate ebony box studded with rubies and garnets and embellished with designs foreign to Yoh's eyes.

He looked at it in awe, unaccustomed to such luxuries, as the Asakura clan valued spiritual well being over material. "Oh my god, that's _beautiful!_"

Blaise shrugged as if it was an everyday occurrence – and for him, it might very well be. "I suppose so…" he drawled deadpan and reached for the next one.

The pile slowly and steadily was eaten through in this fashion, each gift growing in price and magnificence.

Yoh became annoyed at the blatant lack of regard for any of the pricey gifts; he could just imagine a certain ex-fiancée who would love to get her hands on them. "This doesn't make any sense. Why don't you care about all of these things that you're getting?" he asked.

Blaise furrowed his eyebrows as he thought of ways to phrase his answer as to not offend his friend. "My family is one of the richer ones in Europe. Many, many generations could live comfortably off what we have right now, but every year, for my birthday and my parents', people insist on sending us extravagant gifts and more money than we can handle. So what we do is take a quarter of it to put away for the ones that come after us, and give the rest to the needier."

Yoh smiled, satisfied with his explanations. "Hey, that's pretty cool." He received a chuckle in reply.

— — —

"Get down here, Blaise!' Yoh called up the stairs. "We're leaving in exactly two minutes!"

"Just a moment," Blaise yelled down. "I'm getting a few books."

Yoh rolled his eyes. "You should've done that earlier when we were packing!"

A door slammed upstairs, and moments later, the Greek boy raced downstairs with a tote bag brimming with books and four more clutched to his body. He managed to shove them into semi-empty pockets of his bulging suitcase, nevermind the loud creak of resentment directed at him.

He stood up and smiled. "Okay, let's go."

They breathed a sigh of relief as they were able to grab a hold of their baggage and put a finger on the old computer charger of a portkey with three seconds to spare.

Two…

One…

Yoh braced himself. Even though Josephine had taken him on several portkey rides to help familiarize him with them, he was still nowhere near used to the nauseating jerk.

The room lurched, and a dizzying second later they had landed in one of the portkey stations of Platform 9 ¾. Josephine and Marc immediately rolled a cart over for them to put their luggage in to.

Blaise was already pointing out faces to the names that he'd told Yoh about so much – Crabbe, who had never said anything intelligent, Pansy, who was always hanging over Malfoy– when Hermione came running through the crowd.

"Yoh! Blaise!"

Blaise smiled and Yoh grinned. "Hermione!"

She enveloped them in a large hug. "How was the rest of your summer? I'm sorry I didn't get to owl you two at all, but I was busy reading up on Shamanism – you know how I hate being left in the dark about these things – and I was surprised at how similar some of the techniques are."

Blaise laughed and cut her off before she could go any further. "We figured you were reading. I'm sure it was most engaging."

Yoh ruffled her tightly curled hair. "Well, I'm glad I won't have to explain everything to you. Did you get out in between your books?"

"Of course!" she said indignantly.

Marc sidled into the conversation. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but the train will be leaving soon, and I'd hate for any of you to miss it."

"Thank you, Father," Blaise said politely, ever the perfect son. He halted the conversation for a moment so he and Yoh could properly say goodbye.

"Promise you'll write?" Josephine asked both of them.

Blaise rolled his eyes. "You ask that every year, mum."

Josephine laughed. "And you usually do, so I guess you don't need any more reminders." She patted their shoulders. "On your way, you two. Your friend's waiting for you to get on the train." She and Marc smiled fondly at them and pushed them away.

"Hey, Yoh," Blaise said once they were inside the train. "Hermione and I have to go get debriefed really quickly about our prefect duties, so why don't you go find us a compartment? It should take us about fifteen minutes."

Yoh nodded and walked down the aisle the opposite way that they were.

He passed compartments full of teenagers laughing and roughhousing with each other. He sighed with a sudden pang for his old gang and continued onward, slightly less upbeat.

Yoh took out the memorial tablet and lifted it to his mouth. "I'll let you out soon," he said to the spirit inside. The tablet gave a little shake to show that its occupant understood what he was saying.

"What are you doing?" a blonde kid asked who had come out of a nearby compartment in time to see the exchange. He stood opposite him and sneered down his nose. "Are you some kind of freak?"

Yoh shrugged. "I don't know why it concerns you, but I was talking to my ghost. Now, would you please move, Malfoy? I want to find a compartment." He didn't wait for an answer and dodged around him.

Malfoy shot out an arm to keep him in place. "Who are you? You must be incredibly foolish to insult me," he sneered.

"I'm Yoh. Good day." He smiled his usual fake smile and ducked under the arm that was keeping him back. He continued on without a care in the world, on his quest to find an empty compartment for him and his friends.

The first one was nearing the end of the train. Yoh slid open the glass door and stepped inside. He sat down in the corner next to the window and took out the memorial tablet. Amidamaru floated out and hovered near his head.

"For how long have you felt Hao close by?" Amidamaru asked.

Yoh shrugged, though his guardian spirit noticed the slight tensing of his shoulders that signaled his worry. "It got a lot stronger once I got onto the platform, and since it hasn't gone away, I assume he's on the train somewhere."

Amidamaru nodded. "Are you going to look for him?"

"No. I don't need to make a scene in front of everybody. I have no idea what he's going to be doing at the school, but I'll talk to him there."

Amidamaru floated around for a few minutes and stared at the ceiling, deep in thought. "How much are you going to tell Blaise and Hermione about him?"

Yoh sighed. "I'm not sure. If he's going to be here, then they have to know how dangerous he can be, but they're relatively weak compared to us, so we probably shouldn't mention the magnitude of his skills. I don't think I'm quite ready to talk about it, either."

"You're right."

The young shaman leaned his head against the windowpane and meditated while he waited for his friends to get back from their prefect meeting.

Just as he was about to give up and drift off into sleep instead, the compartment door opened. "Hey, sleepyhead," Blaise said with a smile. He sat next to Yoh and Hermione sat across from them.

"Hey, how was the meeting?" Yoh asked as he stretched his arms over his head.

"Pointless. Did anything interesting happen on the way over?"

"Not really. I ran into Malfoy, but that's it."

"Hm."

Amidamaru stared pointedly at Yoh, as if to say "Hurry up with it already!"

Yoh sighed, mustering up his resolve. "Do you remember the whole thing that I didn't really want to mention a couple of weeks ago?" he asked.

Blaise and Hermione nodded and tried not to look too excited that he was letting them into this.

"Well, you two deserve to know, since someone I was involved with during it is going to the school this year."

"One of your friends?" Hermione asked.

Yoh blanched. "Erm…no. He's the ringleader of the ones who were plotting to take over the world."

Hermione stared at him in shock for a moment before transitioning into a full storm of rage. "Professor Dumbledore's letting someone like that into the school?" she yelled. "Does he even know? You have to tell him immediately!"

Blaise, considerably more composed, asked grimly, "He's our age?"

Yoh pulled a face; it was too late to turn back. "How about I just tell you the whole story?"

Hermione sat back down, still shaken. "You'd better not leave anything out!"

Apologizing silently for that particular necessity, Yoh took a deep breath and began. "I've been training to become a shaman for as long as I can remember, and have wanted to be Shaman King ever since I was three or four. The Shaman Fight preliminaries began when I was twelve and I fought because it was all I knew how to do. I made many good friends that I'm sure will be coming around eventually.

"However, in all sorts of battles like this one, there has to be some kind of bad guy. This one was a teenager, the same age as myself. After a battle, he revealed that we were identical twins separated at birth. Somewhere underneath my denial, I'd probably suspected it all along. After all, we could've easily passed for the other if our hair lengths were the same. At the end of the Shaman Fight I was the only one stopping him from world domination, but he was more powerful than me by far. By some means, he managed to literally eat my soul, and I became part of him. While we were the same person, I learned why he did what he did, and was able to come to terms with it. Without going into details, I got out of his body and killed him." He shrugged as he came to the end of his abridged tale. "And now he's back, and I don't know why."

Blaise raised his eyebrows, still amazingly unmoved. "That's quite the story, but how do you know he's going to be here?"

"I can feel his presence, and since it's remained constant for the whole trip, there's no way he isn't coming along."

"But Yoh," Hermione, in considerably more panic than Blaise, said, "how can you be sure he's not going to try and take over the world again?"

"I have no doubt that's what he's thinking, but I'll do my best to change his mind or come to a happy medium."

Hermione's eyes grew large. "You want to reason with a murderer?"

Yoh shrugged. "What else can I do? The only reason I killed him in the first place was because I knew he was powerful enough to come back. I just didn't think it'd be so soon."

"But you've made him out to be a cold-blooded killer!"

"He is, but he also has good intentions and morals."

"Why are you humanizing him? He's done unjustifiable things, and you're trying to make sense of them! Killers will always be killers, and once you reach a certain state of mind, there's no going back."

"There's more to him than just killing without a thought. He's not like the Hollywood serial killer you see on TV; he's got morals and a soul. "

Hermione sighed and backed down. "I know there are things you haven't mentioned that would have more of an impact on my thoughts of him, and we can debate it once you've told us. But you should still tell Professor Dumbledore!"

Yoh smiled. "It's a deal. The only thing I really want you to take from this conversation is that he's very dangerous and you should leave me to deal with him. I don't want to inform the headmaster unless absolutely necessary. Things might get…complicated. Promise me you won't go tell him?"

She looked skeptical, but caved at his pleading face. "Okay. But if there's the slightest bit of trouble, I'm telling him."

"We have a deal," Yoh answered.

A couple minutes later Hermione stood up. "I'm going to go visit Harry and Ron. They're probably wondering where I am."

Yoh brightened. "Can I come, too?"

"Of course." She looked down at Blaise. "Would you like to come, too?"

He shook his head. "No, thank you. I'm not up for a headache quite yet."

Hermione looked offended, but ignored it and left the compartment with Yoh.

"Jerk," she mumbled.

Yoh shrugged. "He's probably still digesting my life story."

Hermione paused, put-out that she'd managed to forget that important detail, even if for such a short time. "So…how did you come about this mind connection with –" She stopped when she realized she didn't even know his name.

"His name is Hao, and we're connected because…" Yoh trailed off when he saw that Hermione wasn't paying attention anymore; her face had turned chalk white.

"H-Hao?" she gasped. "I read about him over the summer in some of the books I bought about Shamanism. He was mentioned in every single one, and…oh my god, do you know how dangerous he is? I can't believe it's him. Are we talking about the same person? Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god…" She wrung her hands and kept on babbling.

Yoh gently shook her shoulder, breaking her out of her hyperventilating. "Yes, it's really him, and yes, I know how dangerous he is. That's why you need to stay away at all costs."

Hermione closed her eyes. "I think I need a drink of water."

"Yes, that's probably a good idea." Yoh led her to the end of the compartment and through the door of the washroom. He stood and waited patiently for her to finish drinking.

"You know," he said, in a sudden epiphany, "Professor Dumbledore probably already knows."

She stopped to look at him, incredulous. "Why would he let someone like that come here?"

Yoh shook his head. "It's beyond me. But wouldn't it make sense for the headmaster of a private school to do a thorough background check on any foreign exchange students coming through? Hao doesn't take any steps to conceal himself, so it would be impossible for Professor Dumbledore to not know."

Hermione rubbed her eyes and took another sip of her water. "Would it be asking too much for you to tell me how you're connected?"

"No. I was going to tell you as we were leaving the compartment – remember? ­– but we got sidetracked," said Yoh, confused as to why she'd become hesitant all of a sudden.

"I know, but…I just didn't know if you were willing to tell me more than you already have. You've been so free with information."

Yoh laughed. "It's not like I'm telling you anything my friends back at home don't know. Everyone knows about this in Japan; I don't see why you shouldn't."

"That's good," Hermione said, reassured. "Now you get to answer my original question."

They left the washroom and continued walking down the train, passing countless teenagers and illegally leaping between carts as they searched for Hermione's elusive friends.

"Hao has an ancient soul, I'm sure you knew that, right?" Yoh started.

Hermione nodded.

"In his latest reincarnation, he managed to split it into two bodies: me and him. And that's basically it. Since we share a soul we can roughly tell where the other is."

"So…you mean you're pretty much the same person as him?" Hermione asked.

"No, I got all his nicer – and lazier – characteristics."

She smiled at him. "Well, that's good."

They walked along in silence until Hermione asked in trepidation, "Are you nervous about seeing him again?"

Yoh nodded his head. "I'm terrified. It's been three years since I killed him, but I know that amount of time will just have made the betrayal harder on him. He's going to hate me, and I don't know what to do about it."

"Why does he matter so much to you?" Hermione asked.

"He's my brother," Yoh said simply, and the subject was dropped.

One car over, and Hermione found the compartment full of her friends.

"Hey," she said, "sorry I'm late." She tugged Yoh into view. "This is Yoh Asakura, an exchange student from Japan.

Yoh looked over the people stuffed onto the two benches. There were two redheads, two black-haired boys, one of African heritage, a brunette and a blonde.

"Yoh, this is Ginny and Ron Weasley, Harry Potter, Neville, Dean, Seamus and Luna."

Yoh smiled and bowed to each of them in turn. "It's a pleasure. I hope I'll become friends with all of you this year."

They smiled back, not sure of how else to respond.

"I should be getting back; I'm sure Blaise is getting lonely," he said to the compartment. "I'll see you later, Hermione-chan," he added with a grin.

She poked his arm. "I haven't given you permission to call me that!" she said, affronted.

Yoh just grinned and shrugged, but quickly sobered up. "Remember, not a word," he said, and left.

He didn't bother to wait around and listen to what their response to that comment would be; he just stuffed his hands in his pockets and began the walk back to his original compartment.

— — —

"Why aren't you frightened?" Yoh asked, once inside the carriage that would bring them to the school. He and Blaise were the only ones in theirs, and he was glad for the privacy.

Blaise sighed and shook his head tentatively. "Ever since I was a child I've been taught to keep a level head in frightening situations. Don't always take things at face value, Yoh."

He nodded his head in understanding. "Good. I don't want you to underestimate him."

They were silent for the rest of the ride. Blaise stared at his hands and Yoh stared out the window. The wheels bounced in and out of potholes and the scenery whirled by, just like on the train.

Yoh would occasionally fidget with nervousness. As the carriage drew closer to the castle his dread at seeing his twin again grew higher and higher.

"Oh well," he mumbled to himself. "I'll take it one step at a time." Those words calmed him, and he sank into happier thoughts.

Eight minutes later the carriage drew to a shaky halt, and Yoh and Blaise climbed out of the grey booth.

Yoh stretched his arms over his head. "I'm pretty excited about this year, aren't you?"

Blaise shrugged his shoulders noncommittally. "I guess. But after six years, the novelty wears off a little."

Yoh laughed and stepped aside for other teenagers to pass by. "I suppose it would." He looked up at the castle, dark and looming, which took up most of his vision. "There isn't anything like _this_ in Japan…" he remarked dryly.

The crowd parted for a tall, stern-looking woman who was sweeping forward with feline grace, followed closely by-

Yoh gasped.

Followed by Hao, in all his chaps and poncho glory, looking exactly the way he did the day he died.

_So you really _are_ alive,_ Yoh thought, quelling the ecstatic welling in his chest, along with the fear of rejection. _We're going to have to talk._ Hao nodded almost imperceptibly, but gave no other indication that he noticed him.

"Good evening, Mr. Asakura," the professor said and motioned for him to come with her.

Yoh waved goodbye to Blaise, who was staring shamelessly at Hao and barely remembered to wave back.

They entered the castle through a side door. The air was stale, and dust twirled up with each footstep.

The professor opened one of the multiple doors, which led into a small room with a sofa, a table and another door. "Here you are, boys," she said. "When that door glows green, it means it's time for you to go through. On the other side is the Great Hall, where you'll be sorted."

At Yoh and Hao's nods, she slipped back out through the door.

A couple moments passed, and then Hao turned to his little brother with a raised eyebrow. "You wanted to speak to me?" he asked, as if he wasn't talking to his murderer.

Yoh nodded. "Well, you see…" He paused. Now that his twin was in actually in front of him, his mind drew up a blank. "I…I know you've probably heard me thinking about all of this, but I want to actually tell it to you."

Hao scoffed. "I'm not interested in listening to your sorry excuses for killing me."

"Stop, Hao, just hear me out. Please! I had to choose between killing you and watching you kill my friends—"

"And so you decided to go with murdering your own brother?"

"No! My friends aren't able to come back like you can!"

He rolled his eyes. "I don't want you toeing the line here. You're either with me or against me, and since you killed me three years ago, you're obviously against me."

"But—"

"You killed me, even after you'd been inside my mind and seen why I was doing what I did. We share the same soul; it was meant for us to be comrades, not enemies."

Yoh sighed in exasperation and desperation. "I don't _want_ to be enemies with you, Hao! I'm trying to fix things."

Hao shrugged, indifferent to his pleas. "It looks like you missed your chance, doesn't it? I'm not very good at forgiving betrayals of this caliber."

Silence fell over the room. Yoh let the argument drop for the time being. Minutes later, the door glowed green.

"Finally!" Yoh exclaimed, tired of the tense atmosphere. The two walked through and were faced with a sea of teenagers and a row of teachers.

"And without further ado, let me introduce them! This is Hao and Yoh Asakura from Japan!" Professor Dumbledore said to the students. "Please help me make them feel welcome in our school." They were graced with a tumultuous applause.

McGonagall stood up and beckoned them to a stool directly in front of the staff table. "Put this hat on your head, and it'll tell you which House you belong in," she said, handing it to Hao first.

He didn't even bother to sit down, just stuck it directly on. The Hat bent every which way as if putting a great deal of thought into something and then yelled: "SLYTHERIN!" He kept up his emotionless face and walked over to his newly appointed House, where his new housemates clapped politely, welcoming him with plastic smiles.

Yoh accepted the Hat from McGonagall with a smile. "Thank you," he said and sat down. He stared at the tattered hat for a moment, and then jammed it on his head, willing away his last-minute reservations..

'You've got more potential than you know what to do with. You're lazy except when your friends are in danger and your main goal is to fix things with your brother. Who doesn't really hate you, by the way; he's just being stubborn. Your courage far exceeds what's found in all other houses but "GRYFFINDOR!" '

Yoh smiled nervously and handed the hat back to Professor McGonagall. "So which one is the Gryffindor table?" he asked.

She pointed to the left side of the room and added in a whisper: "Welcome to Gryffindor, Mr. Asakura."

**Wow, twelve pages in Word! I'm sorry for the LOOONG delay and there are many valid excuses that I'm sure nobody cares about.**

**I hope this chapter lives up to everybody's expectations! (And now I should go do my homework. I go back to school tomorrow and I've hardly finished anything. I have to read half of East of Eden [Which I'm only halfway through – and it's a monster of a book! and do a French essay and other assorted stuff. o.0)**

**Again, I'm super-sorry about the delay, and I'll try to get the next one out half as quickly! (Which isn't saying much).**

**InsaneBlackHeart**

**(P.S. – REVIEW!!)**

**Oh yeah! And thanks to my fabulous beta, animelover120. She's a very good critic and I'm extremely grateful for the work she puts in to make these chapters somewhat presentable. :laughs:**


	3. Chapter 3

**WARNING: This hasn't been betaed yet, but I'm leaving tomorrow for Israel for six weeks, so I'd like to have it up (even partially) before I leave. Don't worry, I'll put the good version up when I get home.**

**InsaneBlackHeart**

_"Thoughts that Hao hears"_

Breakfast the next morning was an exhausting affair. Nearly half of the school was crowded around the Gryffindor table trying to get a word in with Yoh, and the other half wanted to talk to Hao.

"--Read all about it--ancient customs--I love anime--go to school--do you have cars--eat dogs--tentacle sex--"

Yoh actually looked up from his toast at the last thing he heard. "Is it too much to ask to hope you didn't just say that?"

Dean laughed and shrugged. "Well, you were ignoring everything else. Come on! You've got to talk to us sometime!"

"Perhaps I will a little more when I've finished eating?"

Ten minutes later and even Hermione was getting fed up with all the people pressing in. "Everybody, please leave! You can all talk to him later, but now he has to eat so we can get to our first class on time!"

There was much grumbling and a few people dissipated.

Yoh breathed a sigh of relief as the crowd began to thin. He looked over at the Slytherin table where Hao looked about ready to commit murder. He had gotten his own crowd, but it was slightly smaller.

_I'm impressed, Hao_, Yoh thought. _What did Dumbledore bribe you with to make sure you wouldn't kill the ones that annoyed you?_

Hao looked up and smirked across the room. Yoh gave a little wave back, surprised that Hao had actually heard him through all the chattering thoughts in the room. _With a look like that, it's got to be interesting._

--

Hao gracefully excused himself from the table. He ignored the few admirers that stood up to follow him, many asking if he needed help finding anything. The thoughts of the ones closest to him were loudest, and he sneered at their simple minds.

He especially sneered at that dark-haired boy – the one who knew – who hadn't taken his eyes off him since he was sorted into Slytherin. Hao turned and looked him in the eye, and smirked when his worried thoughts were broadcasted directly to him.

He faced back, and continued his thoughts. Dumbledore's intentions for bringing him to the school were clear: to get Yoh to make him stop his genocide. Hao scoffed. _What stupidity. Like anything can stop me, much less him._ Hao walked out the main entrance and around the school to the east side, where the sun was shining on the old stone. He sat against it and began to meditate.

He wasn't sure how long he had been sitting there when he heard someone approaching.

"Um, hello?"

A girl.

"Are you awake?" she asked. Her thoughts were frightened. "_Please don't kill me please don't kill me."_

_This must be the other one._

She took a deep breath. "What are your intentions for coming here? Yoh told me about you and some of your history, and I've read about you a little bit and–"

Hao opened his eyes and looked at her, and she stopped talking. "If he told you about me, then you must know what my intentions are."

She paled. _"Yoh was right. Oh my god, I need to go tell Dumbledore, even though I promi--"_

"Traitors are the worst kind of human," he said with a smile identical to Yoh's and closed his eyes again. _Dumbledore is much more of an idiot than he will ever realize. Bringing me here has only furthered my plans for bringing the human world to its knees._ He cracked open an eye to see the girl standing there. "Why are you still here? Go running back to my brother and your little friends."

"But what about you? We have class!"

"And what about you being scared senseless of me? Don't worry, I'll get there on time." He heard her racing off. _She was actually a rather smart girl for her age._

Hao breathed out and tried to relax back into his body, but was disturbed by the tail end of a conversation between his brother and his brother's friend. He called his Spirit of Fire to take him down to the dungeons where they would be. He knew his appearance would cause a commotion, but better that than let Yoh spill too many of his secrets.

--

Hermione was nowhere to be seen, which left Yoh to walk down into the dungeons by himself, trying to ignore his classmates, many of whom still wanted to talk to him.

"What was your home life like?" one asked.

"Not too different than this."

"Did you have lots of friends?" asked another.

"Yes."

"Do you have a girlfriend?"

"I did."

"Would you like to go out with me?"

"No."

"What about me?"

"No."

"Me?"

"No."

"Stop pestering him! Do you like Quidditch?"

"Never played."

He was trying to be patient and answer all of their questions, albeit with as few words as he could, but he could feel himself starting to wear thin.

He gave a sigh of relief when he saw Blaise elbowing through the many people clustered around him. He grabbed his arm and pulled him away.

"Thank you," Yoh said when they were far enough away. "They've been doing that since I woke up!"

Blaise smiled. "I'm sure they have. Hao has been in the very same predicament for just as long. Lucky for him, though, he escaped away at breakfast."

Yoh shook his head in wonderment, daydreaming of being able to get away with the same thing. "Speaking of Hao, how do you think I could get him to talk to me?"

Blaise shrugged. "I don't know. I don't have any siblings myself, and I'd let my dislike of him get in the way of giving you a good answer."

"At least you're honest," Yoh responded. "But I wish you could just try to give him a chance."

"Why? I don't have any emotional attachment to him like you do, and he already dislikes me."

Yoh sighed. "I knew it was futile, anyway." He smiled suddenly. "Well, I'll eventually make you be able to stand him."

Blaise stared at him. "You think I'll be able to stand him someday? He's a killer! What would I possibly be able to like about him?"

"He's passionate about ending suffering, just like you. You're passive in that you give money to those that need it so that they might have a better life; he's aggressive by wanting to destroy the root of the entire problem."

"Yes, but he's still a killer."

"It's all he knows how to do. He's been betrayed enough times that he won't trust anyone to stay by him; it would turn nearly anyone into someone like that."

"Voldemort turned Dark by his own actions, not those of anyone else's."

"And they aren't the same type of pers—"

The rest of Yoh's sentence was cut off by the appearance of Hao in a burst of flame. Everyone waiting down in the dungeon screamed.

Hao blinked gave them an apologetic look. "I'm sorry about that; I didn't realize I would cause such a disturbance. It's a common magic in Japan." He smiled and turned to Yoh.

"Humans can't understand our actions, because they haven't experienced what we have," he said to him. "It isn't worth it to try." Hao placed his hand on Yoh's shoulder and walked away.

Blaise glared at his retreating back. "He's such an ass, thinking that being a shaman automatically makes him better than us."

"Shouldn't the professor be here by now?" Yoh asked, changing the subject.

Blaise looked at his pocket watch. "We've got another few minutes," he answered.

When Professor Snape opened his door not too long after, it was with his customary glare, and he read off the seat assignments for the year with his sneering, droning voice that would quickly become commonplace.

Yoh took his seat next to Hao, and was probably the only person in the entire room pleased with his desk partner.


End file.
